Childminder

Childminder

Unique reference number (URN): 2825985 Registered with Ofsted: 14/03/2025 Registers: EYR, CCR, VCR

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Safeguarding standards met

The safeguarding standards are met. This means that leaders and/or those responsible for governance and oversight fulfil their specific responsibilities and have established an open culture in which safeguarding is everyone's responsibility and concerns are actively identified, acted upon and managed. As a result, children are made safer and feel safe.

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How we evaluate safeguarding

When we inspect settings for safeguarding, they can have the following outcomes:

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How we evaluate safeguarding

Met: The setting has an open and positive culture of safeguarding. Not met: The setting has not created an open and positive culture of safeguarding. Not all legal requirements are met.

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Achievement Strong standard

Children consistently make progress from their individual starting points. They develop impressive communication and language skills. Children express their wants and needs, talk about their interests and use increasingly varied vocabulary. For example, children describe a book as 'fluffy' and join in with familiar songs and phrases. This growing vocabulary helps them communicate confidently and participate fully in experiences. Children who speak more than one language confidently communicate in English and their home language.

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Achievement Strong standard

Children remember and apply previous learning. For example, they identify colours and connect these to familiar objects. They use their fingers to represent quantities as they count. This demonstrates their growing understanding of early mathematical concepts and ability to use what they know in different situations.

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Achievement Strong standard

Children engage with enthusiasm in physical activities and make highly effective progress. For example, children who previously needed support strengthen their physical skills through active experiences, such as climbing, jumping and regular walking. As a result, children develop the communication, physical skills, knowledge and confidence that prepare them well for their next stage of learning.

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Behaviour, attitudes and establishing routines Strong standard

Children form positive relationships and understand expectations for their behaviour. The childminder uses calm language, clear instructions and familiar phrases to reinforce these. For example, at tidy-up time she reminds children to 'choose it, use it, put it away'. Children respond readily and work together to return resources. They use good manners, share and take turns. When minor disagreements occur, children communicate their wishes, such as saying 'no' when another child attempts to take their toy. As a result, children develop the social skills and confidence to cooperate, express themselves and resolve minor conflicts.

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Behaviour, attitudes and establishing routines Strong standard

The childminder consistently embeds daily routines. Children know what happens next. For example, they confidently recall after lunch that they will collect children from school. This consistency helps children feel secure, manage transitions and participate positively throughout the day. The childminder works with parents to promote regular attendance and punctuality. This provides continuity in children's routines and experiences.

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Behaviour, attitudes and establishing routines Strong standard

The childminder considers children's age, development and individual needs, when supporting behaviour. She teaches children to recognise and express emotions and reinforces expectations, such as using 'kind hands'. As a result, children learn that their feelings are accepted while they develop acceptable ways to express them. This helps them regulate their behaviour and build positive relationships with others.

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Children's welfare and wellbeing Strong standard

Children feel safe, secure and valued in the childminder's care. They seek her out for affection and accept cuddles, when they need reassurance. The childminder helps children recognise and express their emotions. She uses books about feelings and encourages children to identify how they feel. She responds to individual needs through physical activity, one-to-one attention, sensory toys, songs and close reassurance. As a result, children learn that their feelings are understood and develop strategies that help them feel calm, secure and ready to engage positively with others.

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Children's welfare and wellbeing Strong standard

The childminder promotes children's health through everyday routines. She prepares nutritious meals, such as salmon, couscous and vegetables, and talks positively about healthy foods. Children feed themselves, help to clean their eating spaces and follow established handwashing routines. The childminder teaches children about privacy and respect for their bodies. Children confidently communicate, when they need the toilet and understand that they can choose privacy. This develops children's self-care skills and helps them understand how everyday choices contribute to their health, dignity and wellbeing.

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Children's welfare and wellbeing Strong standard

The childminder adapts eating and sleeping routines to children's individual needs and follows safer practice. She supervises children closely while eating, promotes hydration and regularly checks sleeping children. Children, therefore, receive care that protects their physical safety while responding to their individual needs. This helps ensure children remain healthy, emotionally secure and ready to participate fully in their day.

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Curriculum and teaching Strong standard

The childminder knows what children already know and can do and uses this knowledge to decide what they need to learn next. She plans experiences that build on children's interests and developmental needs. For example, she provides regular opportunities for children to hop, jump and climb to strengthen their physical skills. She adapts experiences for children who need greater challenge, such as introducing more advanced vocabulary through books, comparing quantities and asking open-ended questions. This helps children build on their existing knowledge and extend their thinking.

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Curriculum and teaching Strong standard

The childminder consistently makes effective use of everyday interactions to develop children's communication and mathematical knowledge. She uses songs and rhymes to introduce counting and encourages children to represent numbers using their fingers. During play, children identify and match colours and connect them with familiar objects, such as yellow bananas and the blue sky. This helps children use and apply what they learn in meaningful situations.

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Curriculum and teaching Strong standard

The childminder places a strong emphasis on communication and language. She reads with children, introduces descriptive words and encourages them to talk about pictures and experiences. She incorporates children's home languages into songs, stories and conversations. As a result, children confidently express their ideas, develop their vocabulary and remain actively involved in learning.

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Inclusion Strong standard

The childminder knows children well and identifies their individual needs through observation, assessment and discussions with parents. She uses this information to adapt experiences and reduce barriers to participation. For example, she identifies that children need support with physical development, so she introduces weekly sports sessions and increases opportunities for running, climbing and jumping. This helps strengthen children's physical skills and helps them participate more confidently in active experiences alongside other children.

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Inclusion Strong standard

The childminder consistently celebrates children's languages and backgrounds. She supports children who speak English as an additional language, using English and their home language. She provides bilingual books, explains parts of stories in Polish and incorporates familiar songs in children's home language. As a result, children hear their language represented in everyday experiences, develop a sense of belonging, and confidently communicate and participate alongside their friends. This helps remove barriers children may face and supports children as they continue to develop their English vocabulary.

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Inclusion Strong standard

The childminder works with parents to review children's progress and shares concerns, when they arise. She signposts families to specialist support, when necessary, and understands how to work with other professionals. She adapts experiences for children who develop more rapidly. This helps ensure that children with different starting points receive effective support and challenge, enabling them to access opportunities, develop their abilities and thrive alongside their peers.

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Leadership and governance Strong standard

The childminder is ambitious for children and reflects on her provision to identify how she can strengthen her practice. She keeps her knowledge current through training, webinars, local authority updates and a childminding network. For example, she attends training in teaching and learning and healthy eating to deepen her knowledge of how to support children's development and wellbeing. She revisits previous training and applies what she learns to current practice. As a result, children benefit from informed decisions that respond to their individual needs. This helps support their progress.

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Leadership and governance Strong standard

The childminder builds positive partnerships with families from the outset. She discusses children's routines, development and individual needs with parents and shares policies and important information. She regularly exchanges updates about children's progress and works with parents, when additional support is needed. This shared approach helps children experience continuity between home and the setting and helps ensure that emerging needs are quickly identified and addressed.

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Leadership and governance Strong standard

The childminder broadens children's experiences through regular visits to parks, libraries, playgroups, shops, cafés and physical activity sessions. She selects experiences that extend children's learning and help them participate confidently in their community. Her professional learning, reflection and partnerships directly influence the experiences she provides. This means children with different needs and starting points receive highly effective support, broaden their experiences and consistently make progress.

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Compulsory Childcare Register requirements

This setting has met the requirements of the compulsory part of the Childcare Register.

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Register

When we check if settings meet the Compulsory Childcare Register requirements, they can have the following outcomes:

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Voluntary Childcare Register requirements

This setting has met the requirements of the voluntary part of Childcare Register.

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Register

When we check if settings meet the Voluntary Childcare Register requirements, they can have the following outcomes:

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What it's like to be a child at this setting

Children are happy, confident and secure in the childminder's welcoming home. They arrive with parents, who understand the childminder's routines and expectations and feel welcomed and included in their children's care. Children eagerly seek out the childminder for affection and reassurance and show that they feel safe in her company. They enjoy friendships and learn to play alongside each other. Their languages and backgrounds are valued. Children hear familiar songs, stories and conversations in their home language

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About this setting

alongside English. They confidently express what they want and need, and know that the childminder listens and responds to them.

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About this setting

Children have a strong voice in their day. They show the childminder what interests them and confidently make choices. For example, children take out instruments when they want to make music and lie on the floor to show that they want to sing 'Sleeping Bunnies'. They enthusiastically hop, skip and wave and choose other favourite songs. Children proudly demonstrate what they know. They count using their fingers, identify colours and connect these to familiar things, such as yellow bananas and the blue sky. They enjoy sitting together on the sofa for stories, point to pictures and talk about what they see. These experiences help children see themselves as capable learners whose ideas and choices matter.

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About this setting

Children regularly explore beyond the childminder's home through visits to libraries, playgroups, parks, shops and physical activity sessions. They encounter different people, places and social situations and become increasingly confident in their community. Regular attendance and punctuality provide continuity in these experiences. Children with different starting points and individual needs participate alongside their friends. They feel known, valued and included and develop the communication, physical and social skills they need to flourish and move confidently towards their next stage of learning.

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Next steps

The childminder should continue her excellent work and ensure transformational outcomes for all children, in particular children who may face barriers to learning and/or wellbeing and the most-able children.

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About this inspection

The inspector spoke with the childminder during the inspection.

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About this inspection

We carried out this inspection under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006 on the quality and standards of provision that is registered on the Early Years Register. The registered person must ensure that this provision complies with the statutory framework for children's learning, development and care, known as the early years foundation stage. Unique reference number (URN): 2825985

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About this inspection

Operating hours: Monday,Tuesday,Wednesday,Thursday,Friday,Saturday : 08:00 - 18:00

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Facts and figures used on inspection

This data was available to the inspector at the time of the inspection.

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Exceptional

Practice is exceptional: of the highest standard nationally. Other settings can learn from it.

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Strong standard

The setting reaches a strong standard. Leaders are working above the standard expected of them.

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Expected standard

The setting is fulfilling the expected standard of education and/or care. This means they are following the standard set out in statutory and non ‑ statutory legislation and the professional standards expected of them.

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Needs attention

The expected standards are not met but leaders are likely able to make the necessary improvements.

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Urgent improvement

The setting needs to make urgent improvements to provide the expected standard of education and/or care.

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Urgent improvement

services providing education and skills for children and learners of all ages, and inspects and regulates services that care for children and young people.

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Urgent improvement

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Urgent improvement

You may reuse this information (not including logos) free of charge in any format or medium, under the terms of the Open Government Licence. To view this licence, visit www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence , write to the Information Policy Team, The National Archives, Kew, London TW9 4DU, or email: psi@nationalarchives.gsi.gov.uk .

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Urgent improvement

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Urgent improvement

T: 0300 123 1231 Textphone: 0161 618 8524 E: enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk W: www.gov.uk/ofsted

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